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21 Answers
21

You can set up whatever keyboard shortcuts you want through System -> Preferences -> Keyboard Shortcuts. This will also tell you the current shortcuts.

Personally, I activate Ctrl+Alt+Backspace to restart the x server, use Ctrl+Alt+T to open a terminal, Ctrl+Alt+X as the xkill command so I can click on non-responding window to kill it and Ctrl+Alt+Delete to open the system monitor (a la Windows) instead of bringing up the shutdown prompt.

There is also a whole load of keyboard shortcuts set by compiz, which can be
edited using compizconfig-settings-manager1 (installable from repositories).

I find keyboard shortcuts to be a personal preference and we are lucky that Linux is so customisable as to allow whatever configuration we want.

Not being able to Alt-drag windows to move them is my most frequent annoyance when I'm using Windows.
–
Matthew CrumleyAug 6 '10 at 16:58

1

Thank you for teaching me that Alt-drag lets you reposition a window in a very free and easy way. +1
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SmandoliAug 22 '10 at 4:58

I usually use super+left/right for switching workspaces super+up for workspace picker and super+down to unfold the desktop cube to see. Makes for really efficient desktop switching.
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Evan PlaiceSep 10 '10 at 7:04

1

I wonder if I'm the only one who re-binds Alt-F2 to "Run a Terminal" . I figure if I'm going to type something, I must be about to do something interesting, so I might as well have gnome-terminal or another terminal handy.
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belacqJan 28 '11 at 0:25

@jgbelacqua That's not a bad idea. I usually use Synapse or Gnome-Do so Super + Space gets me everywhere I need to go - including the terminal.
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Marco Ceppi♦Jan 28 '11 at 0:45

Once you get Compiz Fusion installed there are a ton of nifty keyboard shortcuts. It's like Exposé on Mac OSX but even more powerful. I have shortcuts set up to flip between desktops, zoom out/show all windows, show the desktop, launch the console, etc. If you've never used Compiz check it out:

These might not be a shortcuts but they do involve using the keyboard: turn on Mouse Keys in Keyboard Preferences and by pressing Fn + [keys that have the same colour as the "Fn" label] you can control the pointer and simulate clicks and click-holds. Keynav is a program in the repositories that is used to control the pointer by using the keyboard to divide a window in half continually. Thus one can click a link with no more than 10 key presses (in the rare case that Vimium/Pentadactyl/Vimperator can't do the job). Long winded it is, but I haven't touched a mouse or trackpad in ages!

You can also put: set -o vi in .bashrc and then you get vim commands at the bash prompt and everywhere else where readline library is used.
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SudhanshuAug 7 '10 at 19:57

@Sudhanshu, that is just amazing. I consider myself an acolyte in the cult of vi, but I love the key commands. I try to use them quite often, and that little tidbit just made my day.
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Wayne WernerDec 8 '10 at 3:17